Bank of Nova Scotia Buys New Shares in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia purchased 36,395 shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter, worth approximately $6.27 million. Institutional investors now own 90.17% of the utility’s outstanding stock.
• Atmos Energy reported quarterly earnings of $1.43 per share, exceeding estimates of $1.35, while revenue of $879.06 million fell short of expectations. The company reaffirmed fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $8.40–$8.50.
• Atmos Energy declared a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, equivalent to a $4.00 annualized payout and a 2.4% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $187.73.

Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 36,395 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,270,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,624,975,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $431,677,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $331,426,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 94.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,652,267 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $562,851,000 after purchasing an additional 1,778,653 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GQG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $202,443,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director William James Ware acquired 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $167.59 per share, with a total value of $50,277.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 488 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $81,783.92. This trade represents a 159.57% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.43% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of ATO opened at $167.58 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $173.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $178.31. Atmos Energy Corporation has a one year low of $160.10 and a one year high of $192.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.93, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.60.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $879.06 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $900.82 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 28.50% and a return on equity of 9.67%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $196.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $193.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $187.73.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation NYSE: ATO is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos's core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company's services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.

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